BOXING

BOXING; Dokes Is Stopped By Holyfield in 10th

Special to the New York Times

Published: March 12, 1989

By PHIL BERGER LAS VEGAS, Nev., March 11—
Evander Holyfield won the Continental Americas heavyweight title tonight when he stopped Michael Dokes at 1:41 of the 10th round of a scheduled 12-round bout at Caesars Palace. It was a furiously waged punching match, with both fighters landing haymakers from the opening bell.

The end came when Holyfield wobbled Dokes with a left hook. Another left hook sent Dokes lurching backward into the ropes. By the time Holyfield landed a big right hand to Dokes's head, Sterling McPherson, one of Dokes's cornermen, was in the ring, and the referee, Richard Steele, was trying to step between the combatants.

Eager to knock Dokes out, Holyfield reached over Steele and pushed Dokes, who reeled backward along the ropes and, after the fight had been officially stopped, fell near Holyfield's corner. 'I Was Worried'

It was no easy fight for Holyfield. As his trainer, George Benton, said afterward: ''I was worried, because Dokes is a good fighter, a good puncher. So for the first five rounds I was worried. After that no.''

With the victory, Holyfield is undefeated in 21 fights, 17 of which he won by knockout. Dokes dropped to 37-2-2 with 23 knockouts.

In the fifth, Dokes landed good punches while working Holyfield against the ropes. His body attack seemed to discourage Holyfield, but at the end of the round, Dokes took a deep breath and appeared to be pushing against fatigue.

Steele deducted a point from Dokes in the sixth when the fighter landed a low left hook. When the fight resumed, both boxers landed powerful punches, and Dokes was cut over his left eye by a Holyfield right.

In the seventh round, Holyfield scored with booming punches to Dokes's head. By the end of the round, both fighters were standing toe to toe and exchanging punches, and the blood was streaming from the cut over Dokes's eye. An Active Eighth

The eight round was filled with action. First, Dokes appeared to have Holyfield in serious trouble. Then, Holyfield rallied, landing punches in combinations that drew gasps from the crowd.

The pace slowed again in the nintth round. Dokes's cut was not bleeding as heavily as it had been earlier in the bout.

The bout was crucial in the careers of both boxers because the winner figured to emerge as the prime challenger to Mike Tyson, the heavyweight champion, in a closed-circuit and pay-per-view megadollar attraction.

The 26-year-old Holyfield is the former undisputed cruiserweight champion. Last July, he moved up to the heavyweight class, stopping James (Quick) Tillis in five rounds. Last December, he stopped Pinklon Thomas in seven rounds.

Although Holyfield won both of those bouts, his performances raised questions about whether he punched hard enough to deal with Tyson. Holyfield was unable to register a knockdown in either bout. Crown Lost in 1983

Dokes, 30, is the former World Boxing Association heavyweight champion. He won the title in December 1982 when he stopped Mike Weaver in the first round. He lost his crown in September 1983 when Gerrie Coetzee knocked him out in 10 rounds.

In 1985, Dokes dropped out of boxing because of an addiction to cocaine. He did not return until December 1987, when he knocked out K. P. Porter in five rounds. Since then, Dokes has won seven more bouts. He won the Continental Americas title with his victory over James Pritchard last April.

Dokes has won seven of the eight fights in his comeback by knockout. In his last fight, against Rocky Sekorski in December, he won a 12-round decision and looked fatigued.